MATTHEW OF WESTMINSTER
The flowers of history, especially such as relate to the affairs of Britain. Vol. I. B.C. 4004 to A.D. 1066.
page 463

advantageous to request peace from them than to provoke them to war to his own destruction. Accordingly, he set out on his journey and came to them with speed, and entreated for peace, and prevailed, and confirmed it by a most faithful treaty. Therefore Bollo, when he had obtained dominion over the country, went to Rouen, and elegantly repaired the walls of that city, which had been shamefully destroyed, and occupied the surrounding provinces, fortified castles in suitable places, and subjected to his own power the whole land which was at that time called Neustria, but which ie now called Normandy, from the Northmen who inherit it. From this Rollo the famous dukes of Normandy trace their descent, as the following history will show in the proper place.
A.D.
898. Stephen was elected to the Roman chair, and occupied it one year. The same year, Eastan, bishop of London, died, and was succeeded by Theodred. The same year, some pagans, with six galleys, sailed into the mouth of the river which is called SHt)ermart, and ^occupied thernselyee in plunder and rapine. And when news of this was brought to king Alfred, he went with speed to encounter the robbers, and having routed their forces, he took their booty from them and compelled them to flee to their ships. And the king manfully pursued them with his army, and slew a hundred and twenty of them, and of the king's army also, there fell sixty-two soldiers. The pagans, therefore, fled to the sea, but as the winds were unfavourable to the flying pirates, they lost all their vessels and were shipwrecked. And the servants of the king seized them, and bound them tight with chains, and then, at the command of the king himself, they hung them aU on a gallows. After this, the king governed his kingdom in peace all the remaining period of his life, devoting himself wholly to the restoration of churches, to the giving of alms, to the making of laws by which the rapacity of the hawks might be repressed, and the simple devotion of the faithful confirmed.
A.D.
899. Romanus became pope, and occupied the Roman chair four months and twenty-two days. He was succeeded by Theodoras, who filled the same chair twenty-six days. And he, the same year, was succeeded by John, who ruled that see two years and fifteen days. The same year, Ethelwald, bishop of Sherburne, died, and the province of the West Saxons, in consequence of the violence of the enemy, remained without bishops or pastoral care for seven years.

"Medievalist" is an educational project designed as a digital collection of chronicles, documents and studies related to the middle age history. All materials from this site are permitted for non commersial use unless otherwise indicated. If you reduplicate documents from here you have to indicate "Medievalist" as a source and place link to us.